Marc wrote: > > Something to keep in mind when dealing with topics like this -- > another difference from today is that the vast majority of the > population before, oh, 1900 was rural, not upper class, and most > people worked regularly. I'm not sure that "women", as a whole, > could often be confined for several days of the month.
It is worth considering that in India it was (and in very rural areas is) quite common for women to practice menstrual seculsion, even among castes where women were a essential part of the workforce. Of course, the social and cultural dynamics are quite different, but it is worth considering that having women stay inside for a couple of days a month isn't nessesarily unthinkable, even for rural people. OTOH, I haven't seen any information supporting the notion that European women routinely seculuded themselves during mestruation, unless of course the woman had bad cramps or similar. The evidence that I've seen suggests that European women either let it drip or used some sort of pad and went about their business. I can say from personal experience (WARNING TMI) that I have used cloth menstrual pads for several years and have not had a problem with leaking or smell. Mine are a modern design, and are basically "maxis-with-wings" made out of cloth, but I would assume that the absorbancy would be the same. -Katie Buffy: And what are we if not women up to a challenge? Willow: Exactly! I mean, did we not put the 'grr' in girl? -- _______________________________________________ Search for businesses by name, location, or phone number. -Lycos Yellow Pages http://r.lycos.com/r/yp_emailfooter/http://yellowpages.lycos.com/default.asp?SRC=lycos10 _______________________________________________ h-costume mailing list [email protected] http://mail.indra.com/mailman/listinfo/h-costume
